I would like to thank you for your honest, prompt, reliable and very
professional approach. Beside this, your site helped me to form a
profound perception about a culture that I haven't known almost at all
before, in spite of my geographical origin. Thank you. I wish you good
luck in all your endeavors.

Sincerely,
Attila Benedek

Fantastic
site, much hard work gone into design and information. The most useful
site I have come across, now bookmarked as a favorite. You would be
stupid indeed if you did not follow the advice on this site or react to
the advice given.

Life
Stories

Married
Ten YearsA
true-life story of USA male married to a woman 19 years younger than
himself

Many American
men write
to Russian women, and some of them get married. But what percentage of
the marriages survive and thrive? All I know is that my own marriage to
a Russian bride is still going very strong after ten years.

Background

In 1991, I saw
several
newspaper and TV reports about agencies and services which specialized
in Russian brides for American men. I was 44 years old, and had never
been married. The idea of a Russian bride had tremendous appeal to me,
for the following reasons:

1. Although I
had dated
way back in high school because it was socially necessary, in general I
hate "dating"--the whole awkward social process of asking someone out,
going somewhere, making continuous conversation, etc. Even calling a
woman on a phone was very uncomfortable for me, because I am a quiet,
shy person, and there would always be uncomfortable telephone silences.
Conducting a romance by letter was far more appealing, because a letter
could be written gradually over a week's time. I loved the idea of
being married. But it's like marriage is a castle surrounded by a
forest of dating thorns. I wanted to get inside the marriage castle
without having to fight my way through the thorns. I never thought I
would find a simple way to do that, yet here was a way!

2. Although I
have a
successful career, I had very low self-esteem when it comes to women.
In the past, whenever a woman was interested in me, I would think,
"What kind of woman would be interested in a guy like me?" But with a
Russian woman the situation would be different. Because I would not
only be offering her myself, I would also be offering her America and
all it's advantages and opportunities. So she's not just choosing me,
she's choosing the package deal of me and my country.

3. I
instinctively knew
that because she was from a different culture I would be far more
lenient with her, far less likely to be upset with her behavior and
opinions, than with an American woman. I would make an extra effort to
ensure our compatibility despite our differences.

4. Most
Americans tend
to take our country's standard of living for granted. A Russian woman
would be much more appreciative of the standard of living here, and my
average salary would not seem so inadequate to her as it might to an
American woman.

5. All my life
I have
fantasized about being a hero, but in real life I'm just an ordinary
guy. The idea of marrying a Russian woman does have heroic aspects, as
though I would be riding in on a white horse, sweeping her up, and
rescuing her from a bad situation, taking her to where she will be much
better off. It would make me feel like a hero.

6. At the age
of 44, I
thought the ideal age for my wife would be between in her twenties.
Such marriages (with the man 20 years older than the woman) are not
very common in America, unless the man is famous or wealthy. But with
the bad economic situation in Russia, it should be indeed possible to
find a wife much younger than myself.

7. Having a
bride come
from the other side of the world is a very exotic, romantic,
adventurous idea.

8. We both
would be
making an extra effort to make the marriage succeed. She would know
that if the marriage failed she might have to return to Russia. So if
she was upset with me about something, she would be less likely to say
"I'm outta here!" And on my part, I would feel totally responsible for
her--I would not just be her husband, I would also be her guardian, her
guide, her best friend (indeed, her only friend for quite a while).

The
Selection

So I sent for
information from the largest agency, ordered a bunch of booklets, and I
wrote letters to 14 women. The letters I sent were identical (except
for a personalized paragraph at the end). This was a very long letter,
in which I "poured out my heart", explaining in great detail my
personal, economic and professional situation, and the kind of woman I
was seeking. (Non-smoking, educated, who could speak and write at least
a little English. I made it very clear that I did not want to have
children.)

I received
replies from
three women. One of the letters I received was fantastic, the kind of
letter I had always dreamed about receiving. Deanna* was beautiful,
educated, and 26 years old. I knew immediately, that this was the woman
I wanted to marry. (Fortunately, this was back in the days before there
were so many "scam artists" around. That letter she wrote me would be a
perfect hook for a scam artist. She later told me that she had received
quite a few letters, but it was my lengthy first letter to her which
had immediately made me her top choice.)

I wrote back to
her,
asking her to marry me, and rather than wait until I received a reply
to each letter, I continued to write weekly.

Meanwhile, I
did some
research, and I contacted an immigration attorney (L. Holmes) who was
recommended by the agency. I learned that I would have to go to Russia
and meet with her before she could enter the USA for marriage. I booked
a flight to Moscow, and the immigration attorney made arrangements so
that I would be living in a private apartment for two weeks, would have
a car and driver assigned to me (so I would never have to take a taxi),
and I would also have my own personal translator/tour guide. Once I
made firm plans, my fiancee (I considered myself to be engaged already,
even though we had not met) was contacted and she agreed to come to
Moscow and spend the two weeks with me. (Her home town was Saratov.)

That two weeks
in Moscow
with her was the greatest (and most romantic) adventure of my life. Her
knowledge of English was limited to about 2000 words, but we had no
difficulty communicating when we were alone, and we had the translator
when we went places together. When my stay in Moscow ended, we were
both certain that we were doing the right thing and we were determined
to proceed with our marriage plans.

After I
returned to the
USA, I prepared the paperwork for the immigration attorney to file. It
took about 6 months for the paperwork to be processed and the Fiancee
Visa to be issued; during that time we corresponded regularly. I began
using an e-mail forwarding service, so that she would receive my
letters more quickly. And she continued taking English lessons during
that time.

The
Marriage

She arrived here in late Summer of 1992, and we were married within a
week of her arrival; we went to Hawaii for our honeymoon, where
hurricane Iniki provided some additional excitement.

For the next
two years
she took courses at a local university, greatly improving her language
skills, then she went to work in an office job. Soon after she began
work, we moved from our apartment and bought a nice house, where we
still live with our two cats. Of course, she is now an American citizen.

Once a year she
goes
back to visit her parents in Russia, spending 2 to 4 weeks there. (As
she is an "only child", she is very important to her parents. At our
very first meeting, she wanted to know how often she could go back and
visit them, and I promised her that she could make a yearly visit.)
Five years ago, I accompanied her on one trip, and I met her parents
for the first time. Her parents have no desire to come to the U.S.

How is the
marriage?
From my perspective, she is a wonderful wife. Affectionate, playful,
considerate, intelligent, cute-as-a-button, with a great sense of humor
and a melodious laugh. (Her laugh is my favorite sound in the world.)
She has kept her trim figure, and she exercises several times a week.
We have never had a real argument, or even yelled at each other. I
consider myself incredibly lucky to have found her. She says I am a
wonderful husband (which I can understand, considering the way her
parents yell at each other). Of course we each have our little faults,
but they don't really matter. Before getting married I had lived alone
for over two decades, yet I found the transition to married life was
very smooth. Her transition to life in America was also smooth; there
was a minimum of "culture shock", although it was a few years before
she drove a car. Being married to a woman 19 years younger than I am
certainly makes me feel much younger than my current 55 years. It's
been a very good ten years of marriage, and there are no storm clouds
on the horizon.

The
Cost

The start-up
cost of our
marriage was about $20,000, which I had planned in advance. This
includes the cost of my initial two-week trip to Moscow, the fees of
the immigration attorney, her airfare to the USA, the cost of the
wedding and honeymoon in Hawaii, some new furniture and household items
for her, and her initial wardrobe expenses. It seemed like a lot of
money at the time, but it really was a great bargain, in terms of the
happiness it has brought me during the years that followed.

Recommendations
and Advice

If you are a
lonely
American man who would like to get married, you should give serious
consideration toward seeking a Russian bride. Physical attraction is
important, but don't simply look for the youngest and most attractive
women. The ultimate issue the matter of compatibility; it doesn't
matter how gorgeous she is, if you are not compatible or if she is
constantly nagging you. I think the "prime age" for a Russian bride is
25-30, because at that age they will probably feel desperate about
being unmarried, and are therefore less likely to reject you. And women
at that age should be more mature and more responsible than younger
women. Also, I recommend finding a woman that meets the following
criteria (all of which were true in my situation):

1. You want her
to be
currently employed, so that she has a work ethic and will be less
likely to simply try to freeload off of you.

2. You want her
to be
educated, with a college or university degree. (If you want a woman to
primarily just be a housewife and mother to your children, then you may
do fine with a woman who has less education. But I think more education
is always better, because educated women are probably able to adapt
better to changing circumstances. And if she goes to work, an educated
woman should earn a better salary.)

3. You want her
to
already know some English. It is very difficult for an adult to learn a
new language, and if she is serious about wanting to come to America,
she should have begun taking English lessons.

In your first
letter,
enclose a photo of yourself, but don't just send a snapshot, have a
portrait photo taken at someplace like K-Mart.

When you write
to her,
number your letters consecutively, and keep copies of them. That way,
she can tell if any letters were lost in the mail, and you can resend
them.

When writing,
always
keep in mind that it may be necessary to show your correspondence to
Immigration, as proof of your serious relationship. So keep your
letters clean.

Set a rough
timetable
for yourself. For example: Month #1, get addresses of women you might
be interested in, and send your initial letters. Month #4, select the
woman you want to meet, based on your correspondence. Month #5, meet
her in Russia. If all goes well, and you agree to marry, have an
experienced immigration attorney file the application for Fiancee Visa
upon your return.

I do not
recommend
matchmaking tours as a way to find a bride, but that's just my
instinct. I think correspondence is a much better way to go. I also
feel that, in general, the sophisticated women of Moscow and St.
Petersburg should be avoided, in favor of the women from the Russian
regional cities.

You should NOT
get a
Russian bride if you are very stubborn and always insist on doing
things your own way, frequently use profanity, or have no manners.

Anyway, my
quest for a
Russian bride was successful, and our marriage has survived the test of
time. May your searches be equally successful. Good luck!

Alan*

*The names have
been
changed to protect the identities

READ
ALSO:

Russian
women are real treasures, and I found mine"After visiting with
her, I realized that she was not in any need of any material items. Her
family has own business, and live very good. She just had this desire
that we as all humans have inside of us, to love and to be loved in
return. In fact, if she had her way, we would probably be living in
Russia right now..."
Read a story
of Nick and Julia

Comment
from the reader:"This
may well turn out to be the best purchase I have made... I hope not too
many of my competitors find this book!"

Discover
how to find, court and finally marry
a beautiful Russian woman!

This
is
the only book written by a
beautiful Russian woman married to a western man
- for more than 5 years!
- and who is also the owner of a highly successful Internet dating
agency.

Find out once and
forever what
Russian women are really
looking for, why
they are looking for it and how
you can give them exactly what they want!

Get responses
on your
letters to beautiful Russian women - 9 out of 10,
GUARANTEED!

With "How To
Find And
Marry A Girl Like Me" you'll learn knock-out techniques that will
instantly boost your success rate in dating Russian women - online and
in real life. You will have more beautiful girls that want to be with
you than you can handle!

And not
just ordinary girls! They will
be beautiful, intelligent, but most of all - honest
and sincere!
You will be the one to take your pick!

STOP
wasting your time and money in search for a Russian wife...
Get it done - painlessly, easily, and certainly! Moreover, have lots of
fun along the way!

Yes,
you
too can marry a girl like the
one on the picture... Click
here!